Thread: Asheville NC meetup ; April 26-27th

Originally Posted by rickboone

okay, so essentially, steer is not steer is not steer... right? that makes sense to me..

just updated the website..check it out... we have another scuttle to give away, a bunch of ogallala bay rum and more!!

Donating Vendors - Asheville NC wet shavers meet

Let me help you make sense of this.

Most all tanned cowhides that are done in America come from steers - A Boy Cow that has had his"Nads cut off" this helps speed growth and makes for an easier animal to control. Mama cows as well as bulls do not go to slaughter houses, these animals make the rancher money every time a calf is born, when their use is up they are so old that most don't make it to the slaughter house because the meat is not in demand.

Latigo, English bridle, Chrome tanned, Veg tanned, drum dyed, brain tanned, Etc. are all nothing more than a tanning process in which oils or waxes are added or the tanning formula is changed.

Grades of leather
#1 = tight grain few if any marks or scars
#2 = tight grain a few marks or scares maybe a brand
#3 = utility leather fair grain some marks and scares as well as other imperfections ie: insect bites, stretch marks and fat rolls.

I misspoke earlier about the strops being #3 as I was typing on my smart phone. The strops I will have for the stropping area are #2 grade on the higher side of the belly, (but still the belly all the same). it is not of the quality I use nor do I suspect Neil or any respectable maker would put his name behind in strops. But I am stuck with a belly when I buy a side, I do use them where I can as not to throw profit away. I also use this area of the cow for liners in projects that will not be seen like the inside of a holster. small bags etc.

The easy way to explain it is, like lumber there are top grades and lower grades. the higher up the cows side the better the leather thus it cost more. Go take a good look in the mirror and see what you think is tougher - your belly skin or what is on your back. Cows like people are the same, soft belly firm backs.

The country the animal comes from also plays an important part in quality. A cow that has plenty of good grass, clean water and checked by a vet is a healthier cow and will have a better hide than one lets say from Mexico that was in the desert eating scrub brush and had little water. All my leather comes from 1 of 2 tannery's in the US, Herrman Oak or Wicket and Craig. they both use only American hides. If I buy hides from outside the US. I buy from Argentina or Uruguay. This is because they have good grass and clean water. Horse hides I get from Belgium or France as horse meat is not looked at the same there as it is here.


This is a very brief and simple explanation of leather. bottom line is - Strops are best cut from the back or across the shoulders of the animal never the belly. Using a belly for a strop is like using a pair of old used underwear to wash a Ferrari

Hope this helps

Wow. I hope you take a few minutes saturday and explain some of this to the crowd. Would be invaluable.
I've always been against using just any old piece of leather as a strop. Is there some validity to this?

Kevin gots a smart phone now check out Mr Jefferson well a movin on up

Geezer are you going to be there ?

Thanks for the explanation Kevin. I learned more about leather in that one post than I've known ever about leather.

Originally Posted by rickboone

I've always been against using just any old piece of leather as a strop. Is there some validity to this?

you are correct, just any old piece of leather is not the best answer. When you get into an edge at the levels Lynn, Utopian, Randy, and others can produce you are talking about a very fine and delicate edge. Lets face it, a true hone Miester can push the envelope to the point that the edge is to sharp for anyone that has less than 8 months of experience. If they were to use any pressure on one of those edges chances are they could fillet their face. So to bring this back around, at the level of honing they will be demonstrating I would think they would not want to settle for anything short of the flattest, and best material.
An edge is more forgiving at an 8k level on lesser quality leather than a 20K JNAT edge would be.

As I said before there are good custom strop makers out there "BUT" also let me point out SRD has good quality strops at a price that most custom makers can not touch. This is where I would point the new guy for his strop. Then as they gain knowledge and technique and want more eye candy that is when they should look around. Just because it is pretty or has someones name on it is not a good reason to think it is any better than other quality strops cut from the right sections of a bovine.

In closing let me say, someone can have the best strop in the world and the finest steel ever produced then honed to a 30k edge on the finest JNAT ever quarried. but if your technique is not correct they can trash an edge in just a couple of passes. This is where ScoutHikerDad comes in at the stropping area.

Chris,

I am glad you got something out of the post. The most important thing to ever understand about leather is it is nothing more than the by product of a steak. Even though we call it a hide it is still the skin of a cow that has been treated so it will not rot. so once in you possession you must care for it.

Wow, very informative info about leather and strops, Kevin-See you bright and early Saturday!

Real quick the address for the meet up is
69 Bingham rd
Asheville NC 28806

Look for a 6'-8" straight razor with brass pins at the entrance

The yeti stopped by the house today and left snot on my door step.
Be one of the first 32 people in the door and a sample of snot and other wonderful Yeti scents will be in your welcome bag.

THANK YOU Mr. YETI

Originally Posted by ScoutHikerDad

Kevin and Ron-I plan to bring Kevin's outstanding custom 3" English Bridle he did for me to show off. Experienced stroppers with 1,000,000 OSHA certified nick-free laps are welcome to try it out. Whoever puts the first nick in it will be challenged to a duel in the parking lot.

"OSHA certified." LOL That's funny stuff. =)

Me